UCAN VISTA Coalition
For over 40 years, AmeriCorps*VISTA has been helping bring communities and individuals out of poverty. Today, nearly 6,000 Americorps*VISTA members serve annually. VISTAs work in hundreds of nonprofit organizations and public agencies throughout the country addressing issues related to poverty - such as public health, education, the environment, public safety, and employment - by developing and mobilizing resources that create long-term sustainable benefits at a community level.
In 2003 the Douglas County VISTA Team formed with six members at three organizations. Now the newly renamed UCAN VISTA Coalition includes 18 members at 14 sites in Douglas, Josephine, and Coos counties.
VISTAs volunteer full-time for one year, immersing themselves in the community they serve. The UCAN VISTA team acts as a support network for each member, with help finding affordable housing in the area, ongoing training opportunities, people to listen during times of frustration, friends to hang out with on the weekends, occasional team trips just for the fun of it, and whatever else you might need to make your year of service successful and rewarding.
Referred to as "indirect service," VISTA offers extensive experience in community organizing, program development and management, grantwriting and fundraising, volunteer recruitment, and non-profit administation. It is a broad-based introduction to the non-profit and social service world, and a wonderful opportunity for anyone interested in a career in non-profit or narrowing their focus before graduate school.
To learn more about AmeriCorps and Americorps*VISTA, please visit their web site at www.americorps.org.